Soft focus filter?

[buggz]

GREAT information here.
I'll have to look at mine.
I bought two last year, #I, and # II, 72mm, I believe mine were Contax.

Actually the Softar from Zeiss was also available from Heliopan, Rollei, Hasselblad and Contax as well. We still have a 67 and a 77mm Softar II in stock even though Heliopan stopped selling them some time ago. We also have a demo 55mm Softar II available also.

To be accurate, there was only a Zeiss Softar. The companies that sold them made the rings. The rings were sent on to Zeiss and Zeiss mounted the Softar in the ring. So there was never a B+W or a Heliopan Zeiss Softar. There was just the Softar. The box that the filter came in said Heliopan or B+W, the filter did not.

But there is also a copy of the Softar that works very differently, although it looks like it. It is from Asia. B+W and others did sell it with their name on it. So if you have something that looks like a Softar but does not say Zeiss Softar then you have the copy.

[Brian Ellis]

Until a few years ago I used two Nikon filters (different strengths). They seemed to me to produce a very nice effect though I never owned a dedicated soft focus lens so I have no basis for comparison. Someone whose opinion I respected told me that the Softar and Nikon soft focus filters were the best then available. Today I don't use soft focus filters, I use Photoshop, which I prefer because it allows me to produce the exact effect I want without being locked in (more or less) to what's on the negative.

[rince]

Thank you all very much. I now have a much better understanding. I will look for the Softar filters, but also for a SF lens. Seems that even great filters still are not an easy replacement for a SF lens. Thank you again for your great and detailed feedback, it is always amazing how much help I get here. I hope one day I can make it up by helping others as much.